Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

We’re reading a book for work. It’s called Twice as Much in Half the Time. You’d think it was all about work and doing more more more more more… it’s actually not… surprisingly. I mean yes, it’s about time management and being more efficient, but as we were taking chapters for our book club (two chapters each… they’re a max of 4 pages) I was drawn to a couple specifically: Becoming Number 1 and Dividing: Giving Yourself the Best Part.

Specifically the later; I am notoriously bad at giving myself time for me. I plan things to do, often for others and generally whenever people ask… if I have a free slot in my schedule. Today I have been re-reading the book (especially my chapters) and I was struck again at this comment:

In order to make the best of your time,

in order to do twice as much in half the time,

YOU MUST TAKE TIME FOR “I” AND “ME.”

You must take the time to recharge and be rejuvenated.

So… here’s a list of things I like to do for me (in no particular order):

Jam to music on my iPod at lunch. I stay at work all day… pretty much. I rarely even leave for lunch, and when I do it’s more often to run errands than it is going to lunch with someone. So when I stay in the office but I’m not working, I put in my earbuds, turn up the music, and JAM! I’m sure my coworkers see me, how could you not? Aerosmith or Janis Joplin to Newsboys or Jimmy Needham. You never know what will happen at random. Sometimes coworkers try to talk and begin conversations before they realize I can’t hear them, sometimes they ask me what I was lip-syncing to (generally Bobby McGee).

I rent either action or cheesy movies. Jet Li? Check! Crying when I realize the older gentleman has Alzheimer’s? Check! Watching cars drive so fast I would get sick in real life if I were in them (even though I don’t like NASCAR)? Check! Watching people dance around trying to win a competition? Double check!! It’s my getaway, my escape… I *heart* cheesy and action movies.

I do something creative. Arts & crafts are big wins for me and truth be told, a lot of my friends express themselves through different forms of art whether it be photography, painting or doodling. But I find that when I am in the midst of a project (refinishing furniture, making cards, or crocheting – soon to be added? Sewing!) I have this focus. Just me and the creativity; and sometimes, the music that becomes a soundtrack to create.

Walk/running. Ok, this is new. It’s something I’m working towards and not always effectively. I’ve lost some weight since the beginning of the year and I need to start training for a half marathon in about 2 ½ months… so walk/running and someday, eventually, running. I’m hoping that through running I can get that same clarity and focus that I do during #3. All I know is that right now…… I don’t hate it.

I go for a drive. Unfortunately oil prices are going up which means gas prices are going up which means that soon going for drives will be less than common. Which is sad. The open road is sometimes the best place to think. To scream along with songs on the radio. To talk/cry/laugh with God. To learn things about yourself that you aren’t usually alone and quiet long enough to learn. Needless to say, I’m looking very much forward to the long drive home from Chicago next month.

I go to yard sales. This was actually in the book! The author goes to yard sales for her escape. I really enjoy going to them, but unlike the author of this book, I like to go with someone! Generally Rachel. I think it’s fun to find treasure out of someone else’s trash. One time I got free furniture, one time an old bunt pan that seemed to be made of a seriously thick aluminum; one time I got a Polaroid camera! Then I went to a flea market and got Polaroid film!! WIN WIN WIN!! Oh… flea markets are as good as yard sales, also with others. I think they’re both good to go to with others because you occasionally need someone to see the outrageous “thing” you don’t understand someone owning in the first place!

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

I thought that was a catchy title… or not… really it’s just a true statement and better than "I Freaked Out and Had a Panic Attack Last Night". Right? It sounds better, doesn’t it?

Yeah, I thought so too…

What? You’re concerned about the panic attack? It’s ok. Sometimes I get a little overwhelmed about things and so when I get a little mentally depleted or weak (i.e. bedtime) I think satan likes to take little jabs and get me all worked up. So I prayed for a while and took a lot of deep breaths and eventually I fell into a not-so-great sleep… but I slept and that was good! There was a point that I thought I would be up all night and at some point my prayers were a little crazy looking back; but God knows my heart and what I was meaning (SO glad for that!) =o)

But anyways, I’m going to a conference in April.

I’m looking forward to it… a lot… especially with all that is going on in the weeks in between… I had a photo shoot for a coworker/friend this past weekend so I’m trying to get photos edited for her by this weekend because I’m second shooting for a wedding (kind of nervous) this weekend and I’ll have those to edit. And then my awesome parents will be in town for a weekend and then I’ll have another wedding shower/girls night out to throw (so fun!) and then a wedding on April 9th.

And Then I’ll be going to a conference (the next week after that) in April.

It’s a conference for The Gospel Coalition and this year it is taking place in Chicago which means I’ll go and spend some time with my family after the conference quite probably celebrating ‘Early Easter’ which will be my first ‘Easter’ at home since March of ’08 when my former roommate A and I celebrated ‘Early Easter’ with my family. I’m pretty sure that there was only 1 small niece and 1 small nephew at that point. Now there is 1 young niece and 3 young/small nephews! And there is an Easter egghunt. =oD

But back to the conference I’m going to in April…

I’m excited. And I’m somehow nervous. And almost a little anxious. I feel like I’m not quite spiritually ready (are we really ever?) to go and part of that is because I feel like I’m getting beat up. Like I’m not trusting enough or trying enough or doing enough; but one of the hardest things for me to remind myself is that it’s really not about me. Or me taking the lead, or my trying or my doing… it is about me trusting. But really just trusting that God is leading and He is doing it perfectly. That God is guiding and better than a scout. That God is allowing me to do, and do more than I ever could on my own. Oh, I know that it’s still about my living my life for Him and reading my Bible and spending time with God to build a relationship. Because that’s what we have. A relationship.

So here I go again, about my daily life; getting to spend time with God and allowing Him to mold me more and more.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

When I bought them (several years ago) I walked out of the store hugging the box. They are probably my favorite pair of shoes (to the point where I gave them away – too big – and then hugged them when my friend C gave them back!) The thing I didn’t know when I bought them, is that one day I would wear them with a purpose… for a cause…

Here’s the truth of the matter for me. I don’t think I know anyone with HIV/AIDS. But I’m sure I know people whose lives have been affected… after all, approximately 1.1 million people in the US are living with it and every 9.5 minutes someone in the US will be infected.

The Center for Disease Control says that while HIV/AIDS affects more men than women, more than a quarter of those diagnosed are woman ages 13 and up and for death in women? AIDS is third in line after heart disease and cancer. I think that was the number that surprised me most.

Now you should know that I’m the farthest thing from an expert that I think you could get. But the numbers above hit me somehow when I was reading them. A common vague topic for me on this blog is my desire to adopt someday and when I think about AIDS, I think about possible kid(s) I might adopt. I always end up thinking of Africa where it is so very rampant and I see the faces from photos that have been on some blog or website or e-mail I’ve read.

The way things are going? Who’s to say that someday I won’t adopt* a child orphaned by AIDS right here in the US???

*note: I don’t know that I’ll adopt an AIDS orphan from anywhere, but I don’t know where God is calling me to adopt from. Therefore, it is an absolute possibility.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

That’s how a lot of dreams start, right? You’re sitting on a plane and maybe it’s going down? Or you just start flying? Or you meet a stranger on a plane? Or there are snakes on the plane? Not my dream. In my dream I was on a plane flying to who-knows-where when I started to look around.

There were celebrities EVERYWHERE. And really I could only tell you one or two of them, but I somehow knew that all the rest were famous too.

(apparently I’m really calm and collected around famous people, ha)

So, all of the sudden Rachel was there. I don’t know where she came from but she was there and the plane was landing and we started RUNNING!! I mean at a sprint knocking people back into their seats (apparently we’re rude to famous people) shoving luggage out of the way and all in all trying to be the first people out of the plane because we were on a mission…

That mission?

We had to find a Christmas tree. HAD TO. It was a must and we knew if we didn’t hurry they would be gone and whatever we were trying to do would FAIL!!! So we ran and ran all over the airport/department store where we could buy a Christmas tree pausing only to look at a sign when we needed to when I realized I had an earpiece microphone thing in my ear and I was getting instructions from Marky Mark (yes, I know he goes by Mark Wahlberg now, but I don’t care). He’s telling me to go left or right and at some point we run into him and he and Rachel see the tree we need…………..

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

I secretly not so secretly wouldn't hate walking around in heels and pearls while I vacuum and cook meals. I kind of like the idea of being home with kids and raising them while my husband "brings home the bacon". Don't get me wrong, I'm not pro-misogyny and against woman working... but I don't apologize for the way God made me. Watching Barbara Billingsley portray June Clever kind of gives me a warm fuzzy feeling...

I'm sure several people think I need to get my head examined.

Do you want to know the only way I would agree with that group of people? If I wanted to follow in the footsteps of the first wife of Feodor Vassilyev.

I thought it would be fun for the 100th Anniversary of International Woman's Day to share the supposed story of a woman from Russia. All we really know for sure is her husband's name. However, Mrs. Feodor apparently holds the Guinness Book of Worlds Records for having the most children. 69. Do you need to see that again?? 69!! That's a lot of babies!

The story goes (or so I learned at a baby shower this weekend) that the Mrs. had a total of 27 births that included 16 sets of twins, 7 sets of triplets and 4 sets of quadruplets... and that was in the 1700's; way before the invention of Clomid! And I know... women in the 1700's lost a lot of children in infancy. But Mrs. Feodor? 67 of them survived past that stage. Imagine feeding that family!